Howard squadron members tour the USCG Cutter Eagle

5/15/2018 — CURTIS BAY, Md. — Civil Air Patrol members of Howard Composite Squadron, a unit of the Maryland Wing, Civil Air Patrol, shared the unique opportunity to tour the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Eagle (WIX-327) based at the U. S. Coast Guard Yard located in Curtis Bay, Md. The tour was coordinated by the squadron’s professional development officer, Maj. George Mader, his son, USCG Marine Science Technician Chief Mathew Mader, and Ensign Angelica Brooks, USCG, who are stationed at the Curtis Bay facility.

Upon arrival, squadron members were escorted by MSTC Mader to the ship for an impressive two-hour tour. The tour guide, Seaman Jeremiah Turner, USCG, facilitated a comprehensive tour that included viewing the vessel above and below decks, highlighting living quarters, navigation, emergency response systems and showed how the sails are set and deployed. In the process, he gave an eloquent leadership skills class outlining the ship duties, the teamwork required to operate it, and how he has personally grown and benefited from his service on the vessel.

The 295-foot cutter serves as a training vessel for USCG Academy cadets and USCG Officer Candidate School attendees who serve a minimum of six weeks on the vessel learning basic seamanship, navigation skills, team-building and leadership skills. Eagle has a three-masted Braque sailing rig, with two masts fully rigged with ‘square sails’ and one mast with only ‘fore-and-aft’ sails. Eagle‘s secondary mission is to represent the USCG and the United States to the public and the international community. In this role, she has earned the nickname of “America’s Tall Ship”. Along with the U.S.S. Constitution, it is one of the two commissioned sailing vessels and the only active sailing vessel in the U.S. military. She is the seventh USCG cutter to bear the name since 1792.

The ship was built by the German military in 1936 as the training vessel Horst Wessel and served in the German military until the end of World War II. Taken as war reparations by the U.S. after World War II, it was transferred to the USCG and renamed the Eagle. The ship is currently located at USCG Station-Curtis Bay, Md. More information on the USCGC Eagle can be found at https://www.uscga.edu/eagle .

Howard Composite Squadron meets Thursday nights, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. in the cafeteria of Building 1 of the Johns Hopkins University-Applied Physics Laboratory located at 11100 Johns Hopkins Road, Laurel, Md. We invite anyone interested in aerospace education, cadet leadership training or emergency services support to attend a meeting to see if CAP membership is a way for you to serve your community. Youths, ages 12 to 18, parents and adults interested in the cadet or senior program are always welcome to drop by our meetings. Contact information for the Howard Composite Squadron is at http://mdwg.cap.gov/index.php/squadrons/howard-composite-squadron/ .

Nearly 1,500 CAP members serve in Maryland. Last year wing members flew 13 search and rescue missions. The wing was credited with four finds. Maryland Wing flew 32 missions for the State of Maryland. Members flew 2,245 hours in all mission categories. Volunteers contributed services estimated at $4.6 million. For more information, contact the Maryland Wing at mdwg.cap.gov or follow the wing on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MarylandWingCivilAirPatrol.

Civil Air Patrol, the longtime all-volunteer U.S. Air Force auxiliary, is the newest member of the Air Force’s Total Force. In this role, CAP operates a fleet of 560 aircraft, performs about 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and is credited by the AFRCC with saving an average of 80 lives annually. CAP’s 60,000 members also perform homeland security, disaster relief and drug interdiction missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. In addition, CAP plays a leading role in aerospace/STEM education, and its members serve as mentors to over 25,000 young people participating in CAP’s Cadet Programs. Visit www.GoCivilAirPatrol.com or www.CAP.news for more information.

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Photo: Howard squadron members on the USCGC Eagle with the tour guide, Seaman Jeremiah Turner (front row, third from right).